Prahbrindrah Drah
The Prahbrindrah Drah was the Prince of Taglios and its formal ruler at the time of the modern Annals. In practice, he was a figurehead, as the real power of the city was exercised by his sister, the Radisha Drah, and shared with the religious leaders of the three cults (Gunni, Vehdna, and Shadar) of the city. The Prahbrindrah's contract with the Black Company and his later betrayal of them spurred many of the events of both Books of the South and the first two Books of Glittering Stone. After being rescued alongside the Captured, he returned to play a noteworthy role in Soldiers Live. Croaker noted that the Prahbrindrah handled a sword well, as could be expected only of Taglian royalty, since he was most likely trained starting at an early age. He was an ethnic Gunni, but, was not observant of that religion's customs. ''Shadow Games'' When faced with the encroaching armies of the Shadowmasters from the south, the Prahbrindrah, his sister the Princess, and their wizard adviser Smoke procrastinated for many years. After the Shadowlanders advanced deeper northward into Taglios's southern territories, approaching the Main, the Prahbrindrah finally relented. He hired a trio of northerners (Willow Swan, Blade, and Cordy Mather) to function as generals over his unprepared and pacifistic masses at the onset of the Shadowmaster wars. Not long afterward, the Prahbrindrah made a contract with the Black Company, giving that group's Captain, Croaker, the option to exercise the authority of a military dictator. ''She Is the Darkness'' In She Is the Darkness, the Prahbrindrah campaigned alongside Croaker the "Liberator" and Lady against Longshadow, the last surviving Shadowmaster. Although the Black Company led Taglios to complete victory in the Shadowmaster wars, the Prince betrayed them and attempted to nullify their contract. For this he was captured by Croaker, and was taken as a high-value prisoner through the shadowgate and across the glittering plain at the end of She Is the Darkness. The Prahbrindrah and his captors all became "the Captured" when Soulcatcher trapped them in a magic stasis beneath the fortress with no name. He remained there, in a place called the cave of the ancients, frozen and unconscious for at least 15 years. The entire Taglian empire, including his sister the Princess, incorrectly believed he was dead. ''Water Sleeps'' The Prahbrindrah and the rest of the Captured remained frozen and unconscious throughout the 15-year gap that occurred between She Is the Darkness and Water Sleeps. By pure chance he avoided being accidentally killed by Cordy Mather, who disturbed the stasis of at least 6 other Captured, unintentionally ending their lives. The Prince was finally awakened alongside 4 others (Croaker, Lady, Murgen, and Thai Dei) by Sleepy and her Company followers at the end of Water Sleeps, which ended the time period referred to as the Captivity. ''Soldiers Live'' The Prahbrindrah remained with the Black Company in the strange world called Hsien for the 4-year gap between Water Sleeps and Soldiers Live. He lived in exile with his sister the Radisha in the Company's fortified city, the Abode of Ravens, where Sleepy recruited and trained a fresh new army. He marched back into the homeworld with them all, and helped lend major legitimacy in the Black Company's revenge war against Soulcatcher's despotic regime over Taglios, called the Protectorate. The Prahbrindrah survived right up until just after the fighting ended in the Siege of Taglios. Inside the reclaimed Palace, he was struck by random chance by a magic spell fired by the Khadidas that had ricocheted harmlessly off its intended target, the Company sorcerer Tobo. The Prince was killed instantly with no clear successor to the throne. To keep cohesion and public order in the battle-shaken city, Croaker feigned that the Prince was still alive. Even the Prahbrindrah's sister realized the importance of the ruse, and put aside her horror to join in. They hustled the Prince's body away from the public eye. A gigantic funeral was held for him throughout the city. Shortly later, Aridatha Singh became the clear popular choice as the new ruler of Taglios. Category:Characters Category:Characters affiliated with Taglios Category:Gunni Category:Enemies of the Black Company Category:Allies of the Black Company Category:The Captured